Bottle crowner



Mar. 20, 1923. 1,448,956 J. J. GAYNOR.

BOTTLE cRowNER.

wom" 0,134/

Mar. 20, 1923.

.|. J. GAYNOR.

'BOTTLE cRowNER.

SSHEETShSHEET 2.

FILED JULYA5| 1919.

1. J. GAYNOR. BOTTLE CROWNER.

Mar. 20, 1923 SsHEEs-SHEET 3,

FILED JULY 5| 1919.

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Patented lll/"liara Ztl?, H223..

NETE@ JOHN J'. GAYNOR, OF INDMNAPOLIS, INDIANA, ASSIGNOR TO MEIER-GAYNOR MANU- FACTUJRING CO., OF INDIANAPOLIS, JINDIANA, A CORPORATION OF IENIDIANA.

BOTTLE (2R/OWNER.

Application filed July 5,

To all fwhom t may concern Be it known that l, JOHN J. GAYNOR, a citizen of the United States, residing at lndianapolis, in the county of Marion and State of Indiana, have invented a new and useful Bottle Crowner, of which the following is a specification.

It is the object of my' invention to provide a simple feed device for bottle crowns, whereby the crown is removed from the chute and placed in position on the mouth of the bottle. by the action of the bottle itself. The accompanying drawings illustrate my invention: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a crowner equipped with a crown feeder embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a vertical section through such crowner to show the action of the feeder; Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a fragmentary vertical section through the lower end of the crown chute to show the action of the bottle in removing a crown therefrom; and Fig. 5 is a fragmentary elevation of the lower end of such crown chute,

as viewed from the left of Fig. 4.

A bottle-supporting table 10 is carried by a pedestal 11 suitably supported on a base 12. Three vertical shafts 13, 14, and 15 project through the bottle-carrying table 10, and below such table are provided with inter-meshing gears 16, 1T, and 13 respectively, which gears mesh to drive the shafts 13 and 15 in the same direction and the shaft 14 in the opposite direction, the shaft 15 rotating at twice the speed of the shaft 14 in the arrangement shown. The shaft 13 is connected by bevel gearing 19 to a horizontal driving shaft 2O mounted in the pedestal 11 and driven in any convenient manner, as by an electric motor 21 mounted on a platform 22 suitably supported from the base 12, said motor being connected to the shaft 20 by a belt 23 and suitable pulleys.

rlhe shafts 13 and 15 are provided with bottle-carrying disks 25 and 26, the upper surfaces of which are flush with the upper surface of the table 10; the disk 26 is a heavyv disk, as it carries the bottle during the crowning operation, and is preferably provided with a hard rubber plate 27 set in its lupper surface on which plate the 1919. Serial No. 303,309.

bottle stands while it is being crowned. The shaft 14 is provided above the table 10 with two transverse members 28 and 29, of

any suitable shape, for engaging the side of a bottle near bottom and top and carrying the bottle from the disk 25 to the disk 26 over the surface of the table 10 and beneath a crown chute 30 from which the bottle receives a crown. rThe bottles are guided in their travel by suitable fixed partitions 31, 32, and 33, shown in plan in Fig. 3. rllhe bottles are fed on to the table 10 in any suitable way between the partitions 31 and 32, and guided thereby on to the disk 25; which carries them in a counterclockwise direction into position to be engaged in notches 34 and 35 on the transverse members 28 and 29; which members in turn slide the bottles onward over the table 10 in a clockwise direction about the shaft 14 and in constant engagement with the guiding partition 32 so that the bottles pass beneath the chute 30 and on to the disk 26; which carries them. in a counterclockwise direction while the crowningl .operation takes place and delivers them crowned on to` the table 10. and into a pocket formed by the partition 33, the two ends of which project over the disk 26 to guide the bottles into such pocket.4 'Ehe partitions 31 and 32 and the shoulder 34 may be provided with detachable plates suitably mounted on the main members of which they form part so that the machine will accommodate different sizes of bottles.

The travel of the bottles on the disk 25 is controlled by a stop 40, which is a finger mounted on a pivot post 41 and springpressed by a tension spring 42 in a clockwise direction toward the position shown, where it stops the passage of the bottles. rllhis stop 40, however, has a laterally projecting operating arm 43, which is engaged by pins 44 on the transverse member 28 so as to turn the stop 40 against its spring 42 to release a bottle and allow it to pass on with the disk 25. rlhe release of a bottle is timed, by the position of the pins 44 and the length of the arm 43, s0 thatit allows the bottle to be carried forward in a proper time to'be engaged by the approaching shoulders. 34 and 35. 1n order to get this timing properly, a leaf spring 45 is provided to hold the bottles toward the center of the disk 25 so that the time of their release by the stop 40 may have an exact relation-to the movements of the shaft 14.

The chute 30 is supplied with crowns from a hopperI 50, from which the crowns are .fed to the chute by any suitable mechanism operated by a pulley 51 driven by a belt 52 from a pulley 53 0n one end of a horizontal shaft connected by bevel gearing 54 to the upper end of the vertical shaft 15. The chute 30 is vertical, andthe crowns therein are in line one above the other, and rest upon one another, as is clear from F1g.-4. At its lower end, the chute is provided .with a swinging plate 55, mounted on a horlzontal pivot pin 56 and forming the wall of the chute on the side from which the bottles approach the chute; and this plate 55 1s provided with vertical fianges 57 which project toward the opposite wall of the chute and form the edge walls of thechute at the bottom thereof. .The wall of the chute opposite the plate 55 is continuous to the bottom of the chute, and separate from the plate 55. A spring 58 pressesthe plate 55 toward the opposite wall, s0 that normally such plate and the edge flanges 57 constitute merely a continuation of the corresponding walls of the upper part of the chute, as 1s clear from Fig. 4; but the plate 55 may be swung against its spring to the position shown in dotted 'lines in Fig. 4. The `edge .flanges 57 at their lower ends are. provided with inwardly projecting lingers 59, which act as stops to engage the corrugations at the edge of the low'ermost crown in the chute to hold such crown against further downward movement while permitting the lower segment of the crown to project downward out of the chute in position to be engaged by the side of the bottle mouth as the bottle travels beneath the chute, as is clear from Fig. 4. The lower edge of the plate `is provided with Aa curved notch 60, which does not extend as high as the top of the lowermost. crown while the grown is vertical, as is clear from Fig. 5; and the wall of the chute opposite the plate 55 terminates at its lower end at about the level of the upper part of this notch 60. A pair ofarms 6l project obliquely downward from the chute 30 on the side thereof from which the bottles approach the chute, and at their lower ends are provided with a pivot pin 62 on which is mounted a forwardly extending plate 63, the free end of which is pressed downward by a leaf spring 64. This plate 63 projects from its pivot pin past the chute 30, and is provided with an Opening 65'through which such chute projects; and it is curved to conform to the path `of travel of the bottles, as is clear from Fig. 3. At the' edge of this opening 65 remote from the pivot pin 62, the plate 63 is preferably provided with an such crown is carried onward with the a bottle. The lower edge 67 of the fixed wall of the chute 13 serves as a fulcrum, against 'which a point on the upper surface of the crown bears, so that as the lower edge of the crown is carried onward by the side of the bottle mouth .the upper edge thereof is swung in the opposite direction and forces the plate 55 against its spring 58 away from said fixed wall, as is clear from the -dotted lines of Fig. 4. As the bottle crown is thus turned about the pivot edge 67, it engages the curved portion 66 of the plate 63 to lift such plate to the dotted line position of Fig. 4, such plate 63 then being car-v ried on the crown. As the tilting or pivoting of the crown proceeds, its descending upper edge at a certain point of the tilting or pivoting movement passes through the curved notch 60, whereupon the crown drops on to the mouth of the bottle, which is being continuously carried onward. The crown is held in position on the mouth of the bottle by the downwardly spring-pressed plate 68, which `rides on top of the crown. As the crown drops on to the bottle mouth, the spring 58 swings the plate 55 back t0 its normal position, so that the 4fingers 59 willA catch the next crown in the chute and hold it in readiness for the next bottle which comes along. The under side of the plate 63 may be provided with downwardly projecting guide flanges 68, for engaging the edges of the crown on the bottle and guid ing it andthe top of the bottle as'the bottle travels onward.

After the crown is thus placed on top of the bottle mouth as described, the bottle continues its onward movement under the pushing action of the members 28 and 29, and is carried thereby on to the disk 26. Here it is taken from the notches 34 and 35 by two pushing fingers 70 and 71, Whichare mounted on the shaft 15 in position to engage the bottle near bottom and top. The

pushing finger 70 is arranged for the attachment thereto of plates 72 ofdifferent arcuate dimensions for the accommodation of different sizes of bottles. The fingers 70 and 71 hold the bottle on thehard rubber plate 27, in position for the crowning operaf tion. A leaf spring 73 bears agalnst. the side of the bottle as it passes fromrthe members 28 and 29 to the fingers 70 and 71, and` assists the latter in positioning the bottle intense he shaft carries the crowning mecha- The details of the crowning mechanismV form no part of the invention claimed in the present application, as such ycrowning mechanism forms the subject-matter of my co-pending application Ser. No. 308,806, of

i even filing date herewith.

' throat or This crowning mechanism comprises a vertically movable crowning head 75, which is carried by a sleeve 76 splined on the shaft 15; and this crowning head is provided with a lifting roller 77 which co-operates with a stationary lifting cam 78 to raise the head during one part of the rotation of the shaft 15, and with a depressing roller 79 which at one point in the rotation of the shaft l--the point of maximum compression and the low point of the cam 78-passes beneath a roller 8O on the end of a p-ivoted arm 81 spring-pressed downward by an adjustable spring 82.' The head 75 is provided at its lower end with a removable throat member 83 having a cone-shaped opening therethrough, which throat engages the corrugated edge of the crown on the bottle and crimps such edge inward beneath the bead at the bott-le mouth. Within this crowning head 75 there is a compressing plunger 8a, which is springpressed downward within such head by a spring 85 but may be pushed upward within said head as the latter descends until a collar 86 thereon engages a shoulder 87 o-n the interior of the crowning head to produce a positive compressing action.

As the bottle -passes onward toward and to the disk 26, after having received its crown, it carries its crown with it, and the crown is continuously engaged and held in place on the bottle by the downwardly pressed plate 63, which is curved to conform to the travel of the bottle; and as the shaft 15 rotates, the head 75 is started on its downward movement before the crown on the bottle passes out of engagement with the plate 63, so that as during the onward movement of the bottle the crown passes out from under the plate 63, the end of which is preferably circularly notched as shown in. Fig. 3 to conform to the shape of the crown, it is engaged by the lower end of the Icompressing plunger 84 and held in place. Tmmediately following this engagement by the plunger 84, the continued forward movement of the shaft 15 and its associated parts causes the head 75 to continue its descent and the conical throat 83 in such head to engage and crimp inward the edge of the crown, while the downward pressure of the plunger 84, which pressure at the last is al positive pressure by reason of the engagement of the collar 86 and shoulder 87, compresses the cork lining of the crown to make an air-tight closure of the bottle. This airtight closure is maintained permanent because the compression of the cork lining is maintained by the locking action of the crimped edge of the crown around the bead at the bottle mouth. The final compressing and crimping action occurs as the roller 79 passes beneath t-he roller 80, and the degree of compression of the cork lining is controlled by the adjustment of the spring 82. The roller 77 separates from the cam 78 during this final action. After the crowning is complete, the c am 78 lifts the head 75 so that such head and the plunger 84 are separated from the crowned bottle; and the crowned bottle is carried by the rotating disk 26 into the opening between the ends of the partition 33 and delivered into the pocket for the crowned bottles, from which the latter may be removed as desired.

The normally stationary parts, such as the cam 78, the hopper 50, and the chute 30, are vertically adjustable for diffei'ent heights of bottles. To this end, they are all carried by a vertically adjustable frame 99, which is provided with two sleeves 91 vertically slidable o-n two vertical screws 98, on which there are hand-wheel nuts 93 engaging such sleeves 91 at top and botto-m to produce such vertical adjustment. bevel gearing 54 is also carried by this frame 90, and on account of this vertical adjustment that bevel gear of such gearing which is on the shaft 15 is splined on such shaft. By manipulating the nuts 93, the apparatus may be adjusted for any desired height of bottle. This is the only adjustment required, as the vertical adjustment of the cam 78 determines the height at which the crowning head operates.

By the term bottle T intend to include any; suitable container, and not to limit myselfto containers with necks and mouths smaller than their bodies; and `by the .term crown T intend to include other covering and capping devices than those with corrugated edges.

l claim as my invention:

1. A crown feeder comprising a chute for carrying al series of crowns arranged to support a crown with a segment thereof projecting beyond the lower portion of said chute with the crowns substantially at right angles to the line of travel of the article to be crowned, said chute having a substantially straight stationary end portion on the dis- The lll@

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charge side thereofthe end of said chute arranged to engage the crown to be discharged at substantially its horizontal center to Iform a stationary fulcrum about which the crown turns, and means for feeding a bottle beneath said chute in a position with the side of the bottle mouth engaging the projecting segment of the crown to turn said crown on ranged to engage the crown t`be discharged at -substantia ly its horizontal center to form a stationary fulcrum about which the crown turns, and means for feeding a bottle beneath said' chute in a position with the side of the bottle mouth engaging the projecting segment of the crown to turnsaid crown ony said fulcrum from substantially right angles to substantially parallel -with and on the mouth of the bottle with said stationary portion as the fulcrum, the walls o-f said chute at the discharging end thereof being separable to permit the rotating of said crown as it leavesI the chute.

3. A crown feeder, comprisin a chute for l carrying a series of crowns, sai chute being arranged to support a crown so that a segment thereof projects from the chute, and means for feeding a bottle beneath said chute so that the side of the bottle mouth engages the projecting segment of the crown and tilts said crown from the chute on to the mouth of the bottle, the wall of said chute on the side from which the bottle approaches being yieldable in the direction from which such approach is made so that it may be forced rearward by the crown as the latter is tilted.

4. A crown feeder, comprisin a chute for carryin a series of crowns, sai chute being arrange to support a crown so that a segvp ment thereof projects from the'chute, means `for feedin la bottle beneath said chute so that the si e of the bottle mouth engages the projecting segment of the crown and tllts said crown from the chute on to the mouth of the bottle, and a spring-pressed plate which is pivotally mounted at that side of the chute from which a bottle approaches and engages the crown as* it is placed on the bottle mouth and holds it in position thereon as the bottle is fed` forward beyond the chute. j f 5. A crown feeder, comprisln a chute for carrylng a series of crowns, sa1 chute being arranged to support a crown so that a seg ment thereof projects from the chute, means for feeding a bottle beneath said chute so that the side of the bottle mouth engages the projecting segment of the crown and tilts said crown from the chute on to the mouth of the bottle, and 'a spring-pressed plate which is pivotally mounted at that side of the chute from which a bottle approaches and engages'the crown as it is placed on the bottle mouth and holds itin position thereon as the bottle is fed forward beyond the chute, in combination with crowning mechanism arranged to come into co-operation with the crown on the bottle, -said spring pressed plate holding the crown on the bottle until it is engaged by the crowning mechanism.

6. In a crown feeder, the combination of a chute for carryin a series of crowns arranged edge to e ge, the discharge end of said chute being arranged to allow a segment of the end crown of the series to be exposed, and means for feeding a bottle past said chute so that the side of the bottle mouth engages said exposed segment, the discharge end of said chute being arranged to allow the crown with the exposed segment to be tilted to move its upper part rearward upon the crown with the exposed segment to be tilted to move its upper part rearward upon such engagement so that it will be removed from the chute and deposited upon the bottle mouth, and a spring-pressed plate which slidingly engages the top of the crown as it is removed from the chute and holds the crown in position on the bottle mouth.

8; A crown feeder comprising a chute for carrying a series of crowns arranged to suport a crown with a segment thereof projecting beyond the lower portion of said chute with the crowns substantially at right angles to the line of travel with the article vto be crowned, said chute having a stationary portion on the discharge side thereof and arranged to engage the crown to be discharged at substantially its horizontal center to form a stationary fulcrum about which the crown turns, and means for feeding a bottle beneath said chute in a position with the side of the bottle mouth engaging the projecting segment of the crown to turn said crown on said fulcrum from substan" tially right angles to substantially parintacte allel with and on the mouth of the bottle with said stationary portion as the fulcrum, the walls of. said chute in the line of direction of movement of the bottle past the chute being spring pressed toward each other but separable against such spring pressure to allow the crown with the exposed segment to rotate when it is engaged by the bottle.

9. A crown feeder, comprising a chute for carrying a series of crowns, said chute being arranged to support a crown so that a segment thereof projects from the chute, and means for feeding a bottle beneath said chute so that the side of the bottle mouth engages the projecting segment of the crown and tilts said crown from the chute on to the mouth of the bottle, the wall of said chute on the side from which the bottle approaches being yieldable in the direction from which such approach is made so that it may be forced rearward by the crown as the latter is tilted, the crown-supporting means of the chute being carried by said yieldable wall so that the crown is disengaged therefrom as the crown is tilted and said yieldable wall is moved rearward.

10. A crown feeder, comprising a chute for carrying a series of crowns, said chute being arranged to support a crown so that a segment thereof projects from the chute, means for feeding a bottle beneath said chute so that the'side of the bottle mouth engages the projecting segment of the crown and tilts said crown from the chute on to the mouth of the bottle, and a spring-pressed plate which engages the crown as it is placed on the bottle mouth and holds it in position thereon as the bottle is fed forward beyond the chute, said plate having downwardly extending flanges for engaging and guiding the crown.

1l. ln a crown feeder, the combination of a chute for carrying a series of crowns arranged edge to edge, the discharge end of said chute being arranged t0 allow a segment of the end crown of the series to be exposed, means for feeding a bottle past said chute so that the side of the bottle mouth engages said exposed segment, the discharge end of said chute being arranged to allow the crown With the exposed segment to be tilted upon such engagement so that it willbe removed from the chute and deposit- .ed upon the bottle mouth, and a springpressed plate which slidingly engages the top of the crown as it is removed fromthe chuteJ and holds the crown in position on the bottle mouth, said plate having downwardly extending flanges for engaging and guiding the crown.

l2. A crown feeder, comprising a chute for carrying a series of crowns, said chute being arranged to support a crown so that a segment thereof projects from the chute, and havin a rigid crown engaging portion on the discharge side thereof, and resilient crown-engaging means on the opposite side thereof, and means for feeding a bottle beneath said chute so that the side of the bottle mouth engages-the projecting segment of the crown and rotates said crown on said engaging portion and from the chute to the mouth of the bottle.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Indianapolis, Indiana, this 19th day of June, A. D. one thousand nine hundred and nineteen.

JUHN J. GAYNOR. 

